Use your corporate blog as an extension of your business
I often get asked why would a business write a blog. I often reply "Why not?" Corporate blogging can give a business a new voice and way to communicate with its customers beyond the traditional norms that business was once operated under. The world has gone social with blogging, social media and everything in between.
Corporate blogging to win search
The trend for most businesses is corporate blogging to win search. The funny thing I'm beginning to learn is that you don't have to have some profound "ah-ha" blog post every single time you write. The key is to focus on the keywords that will drive the traffic through search engines to your corporate blog. There is still no reason to use only keywords and write complete jibberish, but the keywords need to be prominent and early in the post.
Building a Web based strategy around search engine marketing
Business blogging has been becoming much more important in a solid Web based strategy. The reason for this is search engines are favoring content that is not only relevant but new and fresh. This fresh content tells search engines that you are actively putting out information to your visitors on a regular basis. This encourages them to send their users to those sites or blogs because they know it is much more likely the visitor gets what they want and will return or spread the word how reliable they are. It becomes the "quid pro quo" relationship between businesses and search engines.
Taking baby steps in discipline
It's been nearly a week since my last blog post. I'm not doing so well in the discipline department when it comes to blogging. Whoever said blogging wasn't hard was lying. I have, however, made some progress in other areas of my life in terms of discipline.
After putting it off for far too long I finally took the plunge to buy a good exercise ball. This is purchase one of many to come I have a feeling. I need something to motivate me. By buying an exercise ball it's going to force my hand and give me an opportunity to exercise.
Blogging for the greater good
When blogging on a personal level it's very easy to post about things that disappoint, depress or unnerve you. Forget the point that potential employers are reading your work. In the spirit of the holidays my message is clear, and the challenge is stiff.
In 2010 I challenge you to blog about positive things in your life both personally and professionally. It can be infectious. I try not to post anything if I don't have something positive to contribute. Every now and then I found myself in the past year writing about negative influences in my life rather than focusing on what has gotten me to where I am.
I am personally going to make another promise to read more of my friends' blogs and leave comments. I will be reading more professional development blogs and doing things to further my career. I hope that you join me in my quest to at least better our little blogging circle.
Happy Holidays everyone!
When to include blogging on your resume
On my resume I chose to include blogging and my blog site because most of my writing is related to the field in which I work. I also listed my various social media locations in hopes that it shows that I am active in the social media community. As a Web developer and software engineer I felt it was important to show that I am on the leading edge of new media since that is the industry in which I like to work for.
I have been asked the question "When do I include blogging on my resume?" The answer is subjective. I think you have to be careful because these days employers are looking at your online presence before they interview you. They want to get to know you before they "get to know you." The internet is transparent. Social media is transparent. They say people are judged mostly on what they do when they think no one is looking.
When to include blogging on your resume:
- Your blog is industry specific to your career path.
- You keep the blog up-to-date. An up-to-date blog shows you are dedicated and determined. An old rusty blog may not show these things.
- You don't have a lot of grammar mistakes and offensive language. This shows your ability to write coherently without using a lot of street jargon and language not appropriate for the office.
What is your opinion on including your blog? Do you do it? Do you have apprehensions and why?
Why “I’ll do it tomorrow” is not good for blogging
Search engines give more attention to fresh, new content. It's that simple.
If you're a business looking to start corporate blogging or may already have a blog you're most likely attempting to do so to keep your customers abreast of news and innovation within your industry. You may also be doing so to give a personal touch that surpasses your corporate exterior to develop trust. With each day that you miss putting out another blog post you are actually missing on an opportunity to build your business or your online brand presence.
Just as you wouldn't choose to follow the tactic of "we'll take today off and be open tomorrow" you should apply the same reasoning behind corporate blogging. Every well-defined blog post you write opens so many opportunities. Here are a few:
- Search engines will view your blog as active and may begin to give it a little more attention and higher ranking.
- Every defined post acts as a door or window that a customer can see into to find out more about your company.
- By focusing on your business and your customer in relation to the post it can be a lead generator.
- Practice. It will never hurt to write about your business or industry.
- Create a personal touch with your customers.
I have fallen victim to "I'll do it tomorrow" when it comes to this blog. I regret it when I realize I have several days in between posts. I know that every day that I miss an opportunity to write I miss a chance to connect with you.
What are some ways you have taught yourself to stay current in your blogging habits?
Consider blogging as a personal sales tool
In most cases, blogs are not selling you a product or service - at least not directly. Corporate blogging tends to have some ultimate sales goal in mind. You want your customers to feel they can trust you. You want your customers to come to you for guidance and hopefully turn that into a good relationship. Good business relationships usually evolve into sales in business. Blogging can also help your career. Many industry leaders maintain blogs and use them as personal sales tools to land or keep their dream jobs.
If your blog is structured properly search engines are going to notice which will in turn hopefully earn you more readers. More readers mean more eyes on your blog. Whether or not you're looking for a job you will be observed and other businesses will take notice. Your blog can be your personal sales too.
Much like employers searching through your social media, many also read blogs on a daily basis. If you have a blog you could possibly be found by the search engines and your blog is out there for everyone to read. You don't have to completely watch what you're writing as this is a free platform for you to impose your will, but keep in mind that if it's extremely controversial or rated for "mature" readers that it could damage your chances.
I suggest writing a blog about what you're passionate about and topics relating to your career path. Establish yourself as knowledgeable in the field. Structure your categories and keywords to be found via search engines so that you can win search for powerful industry keywords and phrases. Include your blog address in your resume to direct your employers and potential employers to your blog and show that you are a solid choice. If you're not looking for a job at least you're writing about what motivates you, and you will possibly uncover some research that will make you a more valuable asset as well.
The stuff you don't see when developing a web site
I am currently, as you may already know, building a new web site and personal blog at a different domain. I purchased hosting and downloaded the WordPress installation from WordPress.org. It may seem simple enough to download the files, upload them to the server and presto I have a web site but there's more to a site than meets the eye.
- Preparation. The most successful web sites are built with a purpose in mind. What's your goal? What's your target audience? How do I want to be found through search? What are my steps for search engine optimization?
- Strategy. Now that some of the core questions are answered the next step is how we achieve these goals. Developing a site map is a great starting point. You must determine how users will flow through your site. Choosing an analytical engine to measure data from your site is important. What are the conversion points through the site?
- Implementation. Now that the strategy has been laid out from start to finish it's time to implement. In the case of a WordPress site, I now know what types of plugins I will need and what should be in my side bar. This is usually what most people see on the site. This creates the common misconception that just anyone can build a web site and make it successful.
- Measure and adjust. The site's been live for an amount of time that you have determined through preparation and strategy. It's time to analyze the data. Find your strengths and weaknesses. Improve the site based on the information at hand.
Create fresh content to create good relationships
Keep the content flowing.
Customer retention is very important in every business. Existing customers help a business create stability. In blogging and web site maintenance creating fresh content should be high on the priority list to continually create reasons to bring readers and customers back.
As a blogger my goal is to provide useful content as well as educate not only the reader but myself in what I've been learning about internet marketing and social media. I occasionally post other thoughts and feelings, but it is my primary goal to establish myself in this career as someone with knowledge on the subject. When you talk to your customers whether through a blog or web site you are connecting with them on a somewhat personal level. By providing more information and insights you become a leader and teacher on your industry, product and services.
Why is it important to create fresh content?
- Keep your customers' interests
- Search engine optimization practices include updated content getting more attention
- Forces you to be "in the know" of your industry
- Creates brand loyalty and customer interaction
A quick scenario of two blogging sites:
Scenario 1: Company A is blogging or attempting to blog everyday. They alert you of new technologies and industry news that effects their business in positive and negative manners. Company A also gives detailed opinions and case studies to show both successes and failures that they encounter. Customers who read the blog also share comments on posts, and Company A often if not always replies.
Scenario 2: Company B is a competitor of Company A and has a blog, but Company B updates the the content only once or twice a month. There is some customer interaction, but the latest post date is more than a week ago. They do the same quality of writing, but often their views and opinions come later than Company A's. Customers who read the blog also share comments and posts, but Company B often has more than a week response time.
Who would you trust as far as opinions? Who would you frequent more often if these blogs were of subjects you found of interest? Based on what you know who would you turn to for business? My guess is Company A. Sadly this scenario plays out more often than what most would think. Creating fresh content for any blog or web site is very important.
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